15% lower downloads/image in 2 years is not that bad, considering the exponential portfolio growth.

Just hope the majority of the new images are from "factories" shooting business people and not my area.

Solution is: ...improve Quality...

Ironically SS are spurning whole new business models compounding the problem with the likes of the 'Dollar Photo Club' as this is the only way other agencies can compete.

Agencies are never too concerned as their income always increases, eventually though the business model for contributors will snap and a McJob will be far more lucrative.

Shutterstock openly admits that as a strategy to gain market share they strategically chose to not raise prices in 9 years, while they also acknowledge that images quality has risen dramatically.

By using long term price undercutting to successfully gain market share over other agencies; they leave other micro sites no alternative but to accelerate the race to the bottom in an attempt to compete.

As you mention they could have used alternate strategies, but it is no skin off their back if they devalue our assets. They still make bank even without the IPO which also gives them the option of printing money in the form of granting themselves free stock options worth millions.

For instance on the date 04/24/2014 the Shutterstock board granted Jonathan Oringer 100,000 shares of shutterstock stock at a cost to Jon of $0 per share.

Automatic Sales:  These are planned sales of their personal stock position as part of their personal financial strategies to liquidate some of their stock positions.

Option Exercise:  These are options that are awarded to high-level executives and board members (i.e., Directors) as incentives to remain with the company, especially in leaner, difficult times.  Every "Option Exercise at $0 per share" is essentially a grant of shares at the $0 value level.  Therefore, if they sold these shares, they could do so at the full market value on the day of sale.  Basically, these are part of these insiders' compensation packages that were negotiated for their participation and contribution to the company.

If you take a look at the link recording insider trades http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/sstk/insideractions

You can easily see how much key insiders at shutterstock paid for their stock and how much they sold those shares for. Thilo sells 5000 shares every month as Automatic Sales.

Insight Venture Partners V L P SSTK Stock Sales Totaling $193,200,000 Paid $0 for its shares

Oringer Jonathan SSTK Stock Sales Totaling $144,969,000

Semmelbauer Thilo (President & COO) SSTK Sales Totaling $3,934,150 Paid $0 for his shares  He auto trades 5,000 shares each and every month and when they run out they grant him more @  $0

Chou James (Chief Technology Officer) SSTK Sales Totaling $987,000   Paid $0 for his shares

BERNS STEVEN (Director) SSTK Sales Totaling $499,350   Paid $17.5 for his shares

To see how much key stake holders paid for their granted stock options look under "Other Transactions":

Sort by clicking on the columns "Average Price" & "Total Amount" Paid for the SSTK shares to see the stock share transactions each person was "Options Awarded" Or "Other Share" Granted. They must love to see those lovely $0's

http://www.secform4.com/insider-trading/1549346.htm

Interesting stats. Thanks for sharing.